Vision Excellence Awards: James Muecke

Dr Muecke is the 2020 Australian of the Year. He is an eye surgeon based in Adelaide and a visiting consultant and senior lecturer at the Royal Adelaide Hospital and Women’s and Children’s Hospital. Dr Muecke has a special interest in blindness prevention, ophthalmic research and education in the developing world. He was a co-founder and Director of the Vision Myanmar Program.

Dr Muecke received an ‘Outstanding Service in Prevention of Blindness Award’ by the Asia-Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology in 2011. He was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia in 2012 and received a South Australian Community Achievement Award. In 2015 Dr Muecke was the recipient of the Ernst Young Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award and he delivered the Hollows Lecture at the 2016 RANZCO Congress. In November 2019, Dr Muecke was announced SA Australian of the Year 2020 and was awarded Australian of the Year 2020 in Canberra on 25 January.